23 Comments
"The dog sits on the table" should be accepted. I feel that "The dog is sitting on the table" is more aptly translated to "कुत्ता मेज़ पर बैठ रहा है". Correct me if i'm wrong?
Some verbs are not conceptualized, natively, as being possible to do in a "continuous" way. One can't be in the process of sitting. One is either sat or not-sat. I agree that a variety of English translations can be accepted, however the Hindi sentence you wrote is not idiomatic.
Unfortunately, my answer "the dog sits on the table" was marked as incorrect, which I think would be a better translation.
141
I agree totally that "sits" is a more accurate translation. I was recently marked incorrect for translating a similar sentence as "The elephant stands on the table". The sentence, like the one disputed here, was not in the continuous tense. There are clearly times when someone would say these sentences and not mean the continuous present.
Curious: how would one express, "while he was sitting down, someone pulled his chair out from under him." That being said, this explanation seems to he the most accurate. Basically, English (unlike most languages) now mainly reserves the present tense for habitual actions ("every week"). The result is a 1:2 relationship between a present tense (non-continuous) hindi verb construction (even if it is adjectival) and the english structures of continuous or habitual action. In most cases, therefore, both translations should be acceptable ("sits" or "is sitting"). Sorry, but 1:1 "consistency" is simply impossible. All languages are adequate for describing all thoughts and ideas, but they simply chop them up differently based on what the current grammar and vocabulary allow for (usually based on a balance of competing priorities: simplicity and accuracy).
What if we added "every afternoon" to the sentence? In English then it would have to be "sits." If a repeated action is understood from context, would "the dog sits on the table" be expressed in a different way in Hindi?
- 106
I'm no expert, but I noticed बैठा is marked as an adjective on Duo, not a verb, maybe this would explain it?
True, sit can be used as an adjective. Here it is used before the verb not the noun.
I'm probably getting ahead of myself here and I'm really not wanting to confuse myself even more, but I'm curious--in what situations would बैठा be used as an adjective?
- 165
So much discussion! And I just came here to say that Duolingo should also accept, "A dog is sitting on the table", but they currently don't. I've reported it.
- 165
And I just tried, "The dog is sitting on a table", and that is considered correct.
- 135
So if "कुत्ता मेज़ पर बैठा है।" must be translated as "The dog is sitting on the table", what would be Hindi for "the dog sits on the table"?
I agree रहा should be included to add -ing. “The dogs sits on the table” is correct translation.
- 162
Can someone decide if 'betha' should be translated as sits or sitting, and keep it consistent pls.
